Polyethylene glycol (PEG) is a synthetic, hydrophilic, and biocompatible polyether also known as poly(ethylene oxide) or poly(oxyethylene). PEG refers to materials with molecular weights less than 20000 g/mol, while PEO refers to compounds with molecular weights greater than 20000 g/mol. Many organic solvents, including ethanol, acetonitrile, toluene, acetone, methylene chloride, hexane, and chloroform, are soluble in PEG polymers.
Alfa Chemistry provides a diverse spectrum of well-defined PEG products for biomedical research applications, including a variety of molecular weights, end functionalities, reactivities, and polymer topologies.
Applications:
PEG and PEG hydrogels are widely used in drug delivery, cancer diagnostics, wound healing, tissue scaffold models, cell culture, and tissue regeneration. Other PEG applications include polyethylene glycolization of large and small molecules, such as proteins, peptides, mannose, folic acid, cellular polyethylene glycolization, oligonucleotides, viruses and nanoparticles, and surface alteration.
Fig 1. Hydrolytically degradable PEG-like polymers were prepared using oxime and/or imine chemistry.
- Targeted diagnostics and cancer drug delivery
Important parameters affecting the biological activity of PEGylated drugs include the PEGylation site, PEGylation chain length, specific temperature of the PEGylation reaction, and junction chemistry.
- Tissue regeneration and wound healing
The main applications of PEG hydrogels include wound closure, adhesives for wound healing, controlled release matrices for therapeutic use, regenerative medicine tools and some medical devices.
- Tissue models and cell culture
PEG copolymers and PEG hydrogels are used as alternatives to cell culture scaffolds for modulating therapeutic release and other applications not limited to tissue engineering. PEG hydrogels have the range and flexibility of physiologically relevant matrix diffusion invented in transwell inserts used by the Valve Endothelial and Mesenchymal Cell Association.
Reference
- Collins J, et al. (2017). "Tunable Degradation of Polyethylene Glycol-Like Polymers Based on Imine and Oxime Bonds." Polymer Chemistry. 55(23): 3826-3831.
